What is a Blue Topaz？

Alright ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to Fire Brilliance, your favorite Geminar. You may be thinking, what is a Topaz? I've never heard of that before. In this episode, that's exactly what I'm going to be breaking down. It's a gorgeous blue Topaz, it's a blue gemstone, natural gemstone that is very underrated in my opinion, very affordable that many people do not know about. If you are looking for a blue gemstone and the color of a blue sapphire may not be right and the color of a blue aquamarine may not be right and the color of a blue diamond may not be right or maybe it's just a little too pricey out of the budget. You're looking for a gorgeous blue gemstone that does not break the bank that you may want to entertain a blue Topaz. So welcome back, my name is Michael from Fire Brilliance. If you watch to the end of this episode, I will let you know exactly why this gorgeous and actually rare blue Topaz is so affordable. Just make sure you stick to the end, okay? So first and foremost, what is a blue Topaz? It's actually made of the mineral Topaz. And did you know that the majority of Topaz are actually white? It's actually colorless, meaning there is no color. The majority of Topaz that is unearthed in the world does not have color. The reason why there is color is because blue Topaz go through a treatment process. And depending on how the color turns out, it will be categorized in different categories. The main two colors for blue Topaz is something called Swiss blue and London blue. The Swiss blue is more of a bright, vibrant, beautiful, lighter sky blue color, whereas a London blue Topaz is more of a deep ink blue color, more of an ocean deep blue. So depending on which color you prefer, if you like the darker blues, then the London blue might be for you. If you like the lighter, vibrant blue, then the Swiss blue may be for you. The one that you're looking at here is indeed a Swiss blue. So there you go. So you kind of understand what you're looking at there. So now, what are some other characteristics of a blue Topaz? And as you may have learned in many of my episodes, I typically try to use the Mohs scale. The reason why I use a scale so much in all of my videos is because I think personally it's important to know how hard a gemstone is. The hardness matters. If you want to make sure that it can last, if you want to make sure that it is going to last you a lifetime, obviously every gemstone can chip and break if you hit it in the right area with brute force. Even a diamond, the hardest gemstone on earth, measuring a 10 out of 10 on the Mohs scale, can definitely still chip. However, most gemstones that are hard can definitely last a very long time, if not a lifetime, as long as you are mindful with your jewelry. So measuring a gemstone based on the Mohs scale, measuring the hardness of the gemstone is extremely important, especially if you're going to purchase a loose gemstone, spend quite a bit of money on it, set it on a piece of jewelry that's valuable to you, that has intrinsic value, that has meaning to you. So measuring it on the Mohs scale is extremely important, or at least in my eyes it is. So a topaz is definitely very hard and it is a gem quality mineral, a gem quality gemstone. And the reason being is because it is measured an 8 out of 10 in the Mohs scale. It's not as hard as a sapphire which is a 9 out of 10, it's not as hard as a moissanite which is a 9.25 to 9.5 out of 10, and it's obviously not as hard as a diamond which is a 10 out of 10. But an 8 out of 10 is still very hard, it's just as hard as an emerald which is also a very popular, beautiful, and a high quality, expensive, sought after gemstone. So on the Mohs scale it's an 8 out of 10, it's a beautiful, sparkly gemstone, the way it looks is translucent, it's transparent, and it's very very beautiful in terms of overall luster. Alright here's what you may also ask, where can you find topaz? If you are not into lab grown jewelry and you want to find the natural topaz, where is it being unearthed? So let me go ahead and name you. It's actually quite available in many parts of different continents and different countries all over the world. First and foremost it does exist here in the United States. It's actually quite plentiful and you can actually find it in Texas as well as Utah. But in other parts of the world where it's primarily unearthed is in Brazil, in Nigeria, in Sri Lanka, in Russia, in Australia, and in Mexico. So you can find topaz in all of these countries and different continents all over the world. So topaz is quite plentiful. Alright so you may be asking, well topaz, do they come out of the earth this blue? Just like the blue that I had showed you earlier in the video, right? So look how beautiful that blue is. Doesn't it look like the ocean? It's a gorgeous, gorgeous blue. Now what if I told you the majority of topaz that's actually unearthed is colorless. It's actually just clear, white gemstone. Sometimes it has a pale yellowish, brownish hue to it. But even if you are to find a blue topaz, it is actually quite rare. If you are to find a natural, untreated, unheated blue topaz, it can be quite expensive because of how rare that is. So the majority of these blue topaz that you see in the marketplace are actually treated and heated. And as you've seen in many of my videos in the past, I've mentioned to you, regardless if you buy lab grown or natural colored gemstones, 90-95% if not more than all colored gemstones in the market are treated and or heated or both. In order to make sure that it maximizes the color and the clarity of the gemstone. So this is no difference. There is no exception to the topaz, the blue topaz, the London Swiss blue topaz as well. There is no exception here. For the industry to create this gorgeous blue color, it is definitely heated and treated. And that's the reason why the abundance of the blue topaz is quite there because the industry is heating and treating these gemstones to make it very blue and beautiful. So you may ask, okay, well, how does it make it blue? Well, natural blue topaz, again, is quite rare and usually pale light blue. It's caused by trace elements such as iron, as I've mentioned to you many times in previous videos. The reason why there are colored gemstones is because the mineral, which normally comes as colorless, has trace elements that's stuck inside of the gemstone making its color. There's no exception here to the blue topaz as well. So you may ask, how are blue topaz treated? In other words, how are these clear topaz treated in order for it to turn blue? Here is the treatment process, just an overview of how this thing works. Okay. So the treatment process, and it's been standard since the 1970s. So basically the colorless topaz is irradiated by gamma rays, electrons, and or neutrons to create color centers by turning it brown to yellowish or yellowish brown initially. Then after what they do is they heat it typically anywhere between 200 to 400 degrees Celsius. And then that's what it does to stabilize the blue by removing unwanted tones. So that's the two-step process basically. They will irradiate it and then they'll add heat to it to remove unwanted tones, making it blue. Okay. So this produced a stable permanent colors that mimics natural processes, but on a fast timeline. The blue results from absorption in red and yellow wavelengths transmitting blue light. Isn't that really neat? So that's really how it works at the end of the day. Okay. So how do the colors vary? I did touch on this earlier. Basically there's sky blue, there's more of a light pastel blue, there's a Swiss blue, which is more of a bright, vivid, electric blue, which is very popular. This is more of the medium blue, right? And then there's also the London blue. The London blue is more of the darker, deep ocean type of ink blue, like blue ink, right? So that's more of the London blue, and it's also very, very, very popular. So these treated stones are safe for jewelry after decay of any residual radioactivity regulated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Natural blue is pale and commands a premium when verified. So let's go over some fun facts here. What are some of the largest gemstones of blue topaz that has ever been found? So the Austro stone, also called the Amazon blue topaz, is one of the largest cut blue topaz gemstones ever found. This gemstone is 9,381 carats, about two kilograms, or the size of a rugby ball, faceted from rough found in the 1980s in the Minas Gerais, Brazil, by explorer Max Austro, hence the name the Austro stone, okay? It is a vividly blue treated and was displayed at the Natural History Museum in London, starting in 2016. It is considered essentially priceless and worth millions of dollars. Some other notables include massive specimens like the Brazilian princess, a very large faceted blue topaz at 21,000 plus carats in some records, and various museum pieces. The Smithsonian has some large examples. A huge light blue topaz from Texas was also found at about 6,400 carats as displayed in the Mason County. So these are some notable blue beautiful topaz, if you ever want to find them, I did list them. Obviously before going to these museums, make sure that they are there, just don't take my word for it. Make sure you do your research that these pieces are still there if you do want to look at them, okay? So, you know, normally when I go to museums, I do like to enjoy the gemstone sections of the museum. It's really neat to kind of see, you know, everything that you learn about and sometimes they are there, sometimes they're not, so make sure you do your due diligence and do your research that they're still there if you go to visit these museums. Now, that being said, what are some of the significance of these birthstones? A topaz is a December birthstone, alongside turquoise, tanzanite, zircon. It symbolizes clarity, communication, calm, loyalty, and honest expression. Historically it's linked to strength, from the ancient Greeks and Romans, the protection of wisdom across cultures. So if you've come to this section of the video, as I had promised, I'll go over the costs, I'll go over the prices with you, and I'll let you know exactly why this rare gemstone is so affordable. And what do I mean by rare? It's actually quite plentiful. It is not rare. Topaz is so plentiful, but unless you can find a natural blue topaz that has been unheated, untreated, and is naturally blue, then it can cost quite a bit of money because it came naturally that way. But as soon as it has been heated or treated by man, then the cost will go down because of the availability of these blue topaz that has been heated and treated. It should not discount how beautiful the gemstone is. Many times people in the industry, the way I see it, is discount the beauty of the gemstone because of the price of the gemstone, and that should not be the case. If you are in the market, and if you are looking for a gorgeous blue gemstone, and this color sticks out, and this is something that you love, the price of the gemstone should not discount the beauty of the gemstone, and that's the way I look at it. So let me tell you, the way you can actually purchase a blue topaz of that color, regardless if it's a Swiss or a London blue, if it is gemstone quality, you can purchase a blue topaz anywhere between $25 to $50 per carat, depending on the size, the clarity, and the color of the gemstone. You heard that right. About $25 to $50 per carat, which is very, very, very affordable, so if you're looking for a two carat, it might be $100. Three carats might be $150. If you're looking for a gemstone about this size, which is about 36 carats or so. By the way, this gemstone is on our website, if you're interested. This is the last one that we have here of this size. It's quite affordable, I believe, if I can remember correctly. We listed it for about $1,100 or so. That's before any promos. So the price range is around there, about $20 to $30 per carat, and it's a gorgeous color, it's a gorgeous gemstone. So there you go. The reason why, again, if you stuck to the end of this video, the reason being why this gemstone should be rare but is affordable is because it usually naturally does not come this way in this color, but because it has been heated and it has been treated and this color came out vibrant and blue and has been touched by man, the price went down because of the availability factor. But again, there's no reason why anyone should discount the beauty of a gemstone because of the price. The price is determined on supply and demand and how rare a gemstone is or just supply and demand because many times, like I mentioned to you in the past, diamonds are quite plentiful. There are rare diamonds, but the majority of normal diamonds are not rare. The only reason why the price is so high is because of how it's been marketed and then the demand became high so that people are willing to pay more for a gemstone that isn't necessarily that rare. However, a blue topaz is gorgeous, which also has availability, probably as much as diamonds, maybe even more. You can fetch one like this for about $25 to $50 per carat. You get a beautiful gemstone. It's also natural. It's heated and treated. So what do you think? What do you think about what I said? Do you guys like what you've learned so far in this episode of topaz, especially we're talking about the blue topaz? And if you do, if we have ever helped you out here at Fire Brilliance in deciding whether or not a gemstone was perfect for you, regardless of it's topaz, sapphires, moissanite, diamond, lab, natural, whatever it is, the works, or if we have ever helped you in picking the right engagement ring, piece of jewelry, necklace, earrings, pendants, or even custom jewelry, or if you're here just to learn. If you are a retailer that are here because you follow the channel, thank you. And if you are a client or a customer that's bought from us in the past, thank you. Or if you are a person that is just trying to do research because you're trying to buy that perfect piece of jewelry for a proposal or for a gift or for yourself, thank you. We here at Fire Brilliance are trying to hit 100,000 subscribers. So if you can help us out, I would much appreciate it. Before you go, I want you to know that my youngest son, he wanted to help out and get us to have more subscribers and likes. And for obvious reasons, you know, he's been so young. I did not want him to be on camera. He had a great idea so he told my wife, I have an idea on how it could be on camera and we thought it was so funny that I had to do this. So in dedication to my son, he imprinted his hands here to make sure that you guys hit the like button, subscribe. So there you go. That's for my son. Dedicate this episode to my son. Thank you for watching. Over the years. And I'll see you in the next episode. Goodbye.